Your Forum Signature - is Missing?

[Lynn Terry]

Unfortunately many spammers were registering here at the forum, and putting rogue links in their signatures and profiles. We currently have signatures turned OFF for free members, and only Elite Members are allowed to set up a signature file.

This ensures that people cannot register and put in bad links, just for the sake of spamming or damaging other members computers. This keeps the forum safe, and keeps YOU safe.

I apologize for the inconvenience. We are just trying to keep ClickNewz as clean & safe as possible. :)

** If you're interested in becoming an Elite Member and joining my Private Mastermind group, I highly recommend you read this post (and watch the video at the end) first: http://www.clicknewz.com/3393/serious-about-making-money/ :)

[C0ldf1re]

This may harm your forum. A sig-link is not worth much. It is certainly not worth the effort of an educated native-English-speaker to spam it. But it is still worth something.

You have given somebody a sig-link for free, and then taken it away, and then offered it back again if they buy something. If somebody did that to you, you might suspect a lack of ethics. It would have been better to refuse a free sig-link to new free members. They'll never miss what they never had.

Some people would say that this is too trivial to mention. Let me give an example. One bum on the street tells me a sad story and I give him $10. Another bum picks my pocket for a nickel, and I chase him down the street, arrest him, and hand him over to the cops.

[Lynn Terry]

Hi C0ldf1re,

I appreciate your feedback. Unfortunately we had to go in total shut down mode to take care of some major security issues. The changes were made for the safety of the members here. We may make changes again in the future, but for the moment we had to shut it off completely during the upgrades.

There are so many other benefits to using the forum, that I feel the people who are only interested in it for the signature are not necessarily a good match for this community anyway. ;-)

[wadeinni]

Received the notice in my inbox yesterday Lynn and agree for the most part. A business forum in my opinion should be a place to offer help and advice as a way to market your expertise while building relationships. The linkback is the second benefit (SEO-wise), the first being building up yourself as a trusted expert in whatever niche you represent.

As a site owner and moderator at Erookie I have to deal with the same thing to combat useless spam even from the most innocent people who don't really know proper rules of Whitehat SEO: Here's what I did and what I plan to do.

1. I once offered quality guest blogging, but with some really strict rules to follow using certain writing guidelines (Lynn feel free to nofollow or unlink this if it violates any rules). If they didn't meet them, their post were either denied or removed later on.

2. We offered a forum like this one but spammers invaded like a horde and we had to shut it down because it hurt our rankings. We do plan however to reopen the business forum but with strict rules like a 50 quality post minimum before you even get a signature file link.

I can bet your average spammer is not going to stick around to contribute 50 quality post when they stumble on to your forum. But this is your choice to go the paid route and it might and might not work depending on how useful people view your brand and your helpful advice. From what I've seen about you across social media, you seem to be a very helpful lady. I'll still be here posting and offering my advice. Building a brand is way more powerful and beneficial than building

[C0ldf1re]

... I feel the people who are only interested in it for the signature are not necessarily a good match for this community anyway. ;-)
Agreed 100%. No argument at all. You have defined spammers.

But people are strange. I have looked at quite a few SEO-related forums. Some members frequently make lengthy and useful posts ("top posters"). The top posters seem to be found more often on forums with sig-links. The value of these links must be a small fraction of a cent each. But the mere fact that they are getting something for free, however tiny, does seem to be influencing people's decisions as to which forums to post on.

[Lynn Terry]

All good points - and thank you.

My primary objective is to work with my Private Mastermind Group in the private areas of the forum. Registered members who use the public forum are still able to post a link to their website to get feedback and technical help for free, so it has it's value. The options were to tighten security and remove features - or remove the public forum altogether. I chose the former. ;-)

It's not a "pay to get features" issue, it's a lockdown on spammers and hackers. That's all. If you knew what it cost me to repair the damage of being hacked/spammed, you'd totally understand. :P

[wadeinni]

All good points - and thank you.

My primary objective is to work with my Private Mastermind Group in the private areas of the forum. Registered members who use the public forum are still able to post a link to their website to get feedback and technical help for free, so it has it's value. The options were to tighten security and remove features - or remove the public forum altogether. I chose the former. ;-)

It's not a "pay to get features" issue, it's a lockdown on spammers and hackers. That's all. If you knew what it cost me to repair the damage of being hacked/spammed, you'd totally understand. :P

Yes, I completely understand and totally agree. if it were Pay to get features like a link, then that would be paid links which Google frowns upon with a ranking penalty. As for the hackers and spammers yeah are a major nuisance. I've been spammed and hacked a few times in the early days of my site and it cost money to repair the damage of compromised data and malware.

[Lynn Terry]

Exactly :) Obviously Elite Members are not spammers/hackers, so there was no issue with leaving their Signature files as an option. So it's more a green flag on security than it is a feature.

[C0ldf1re]

... if it were Pay to get features like a link, then that would be paid links which Google frowns upon with a ranking penalty...
If they don't pay, they don't get a link. If they do pay, then they do get a link.

So, does this make them paid links? What would Google say? "This is not the hardest question that we have ever been asked!"


... Obviously Elite Members are not spammers...
How obvious?

They probably have websites that they wish to rank well. Buying links has always been a good way to rank well (unless Google's Penguin update works!) If they do not buy links directly, then they possibly employ SEO experts who do. Once you buy links, you are probably buying spam links.

Many of your Holy and Anointed Elite Members are surely indirectly paying for Philipino spammers to tap away, or for blasts on SENuke (an automatic spamming software system). Does this make the Elite members spammers?

What would a Judge say? "Has your client never heard of the maxim: 'qui facit per alium facit per se'? Ignorance of the law is no excuse, you know!"

[Lynn Terry]

LOL, we can agree to disagree. I'm not even responding to that :P

[C0ldf1re]

Good Heavens! A lady of the female sort is going to let me have the last word! :p

[MaggeeB]

As a brand new member to the elite group; I did not join for a signature link and haven't even set one up. I understand where Lynn is coming from and respect her decision. No discussion even necessary as far as I am concerned. Thanks for giving us a safe place to share Lynn!

[CorpRebel]

@Coldfire

Methinks thou dost protest too much...

Your initial GRAND contributions to this "free" forum have ONLY been to criticize an updated forum policy to protect the forum and it's members. NOTHING constructive at all so far from you.

IF a forum is of value to you then just being able to freely leave a signature link shouldn't be a priority anyway. Plenty of good forums out there that DON'T allow sig links, yet do quite well. I'm finding that many useful forums out there are starting to disallow sig links for the very reasons Lynn has mentioned.

It appears that you have probably never owned and operated a busy, "successful" forum before or you'd most likely understand where Lynn and other forum owners are coming from.


http://www.ebizrantzandravez.com/images/rickakacorp_blk2.gif :cool:

P.S. It never ceases to amaze me at how so many people will complain about "FREE". :rolleyes:

[Susan Brown]

Thanks for keeping the forum and our PCs safe, Lynn. I really appreciate that.

[C0ldf1re]

... It appears that you have probably never owned and operated a busy, "successful" forum before or you'd most likely understand where Lynn and other forum owners are coming from...
Well, Rick, your signature-link to Rantz-and-Ravez got me visiting your blog. What a surprise to find this advice staring me in the face, "Use Free Forum Posting"! :) You have gathered some useful information on your blog, and I am going to read more.

I found creating a forum very easy, and attracting 6,300 members not really hard. But "successful" in the sense of getting a worthwhile profit? I still have to crack that nut!

That is, of course, why I am so interested in the nuts-and-bolts of keeping forum members happy, and why I wondered about the effect of removing free sig-links on this forum.

[CorpRebel]

Well, Rick, your signature-link to Rantz-and-Ravez got me visiting your blog. What a surprise to find this advice staring me in the face, "Use Free Forum Posting"! :) You have gathered some useful information on your blog, and I am going to read more.

NEVER said a sig link, if allowed, doesn't do any good. IF it's allowed, I'll certainly make use of it. IF it wasn't allowed (for whatever reason), it wouldn't bother me a bit. I'd still participate in the forum(s).

Forum posting can STILL be a good way to gain some exposure IF done right. But it's ONLY as good as the info one posts. "Drive By" forum posting for the sake of a link isn't really very useful to either party. And nowadays, Google seems to be taking a dimmer view of the links (as backlinks) from forums and blog comments anyway.


I found creating a forum very easy, and attracting 6,300 members not really hard. But "successful" in the sense of getting a worthwhile profit? I still have to crack that nut!

That is, of course, why I am so interested in the nuts-and-bolts of keeping forum members happy, and why I wondered about the effect of removing free sig-links on this forum.

Yep ... A "successful" forum IS a "tough nut to crack" these days. But stick around and take a look at how Lynn does things and you'll likely have a good idea of how to go about it. ;)

Have Fun!

http://www.ebizrantzandravez.com/images/rickakacorp_blk2.gif :cool:

[Lynn Terry]

C0ldf1re is obviously out to harm this forum by including hidden links in his posts, which are obviously frowned on by Google.

I find it interesting you would engage in an activity you were so against. This is your one and only warning: stick to the discussion and act like an adult. Otherwise you'll be banned.

[C0ldf1re]

C0ldf1re is obviously out to harm this forum by including hidden links in his posts, which are obviously frowned on by Google.
Lynn. I'm sorry you were upset. It was a joke. I mean, think of the hidden message, and see it as the joke that it was meant to be.

[Lynn Terry]

Hidden text and hidden links are no joke to Google.

I'm not at all upset, just taking note of your intentions.